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grimintuition's review against another edition
challenging
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
adam_kirsch's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
dooliah's review against another edition
4.0
I liked the writing style of this book immensely, the beginning was a little rough when I was first getting used to the style but over the course of the book it slowly mad sense in the context of the authors intention
Patrick Batemans experiences a slow devolution of his character throughout the novel which prompted interesting discourse. He represents a byproduct of the upper echelons of New York high society through his vapid and superficial behaviors such as describing acquaintances solely through their brand name clothing as well as intense distaste for the homeless in New York. A close analogy I can provide for Patricks dynamics with characters can be described as a dangerous and bloodthirsty shark being dropped into an aquarium full of unassuming fish. Despite the numerous and blatant attempts and hints Patrick drops throughout the course of the novel to his friends and victims, none take any notice or show any sign of wariness. The reasons for this can be numerous and I’ve developed many theories, when he offers the escort girls money despite his previous torture against them they still walk confidently into the lions den hinting against towards the money hungry part of society. Additionally when his acquaintances brush off his scary remarks also indicates their distaste for conversation that doesn’t interest them or an overall inability to listen which also points towards a superficial aspect to Patrick’s dynamics with his friends.
Overall, I really like the message and the writing style of the novel as well as the character profiles of Patrick, but the torture scenes of this novel broke me. Way to explicit (coming from a Stephen king fan) I couldn’t handle them so I had to bump down my rating.
Patrick Batemans experiences a slow devolution of his character throughout the novel which prompted interesting discourse. He represents a byproduct of the upper echelons of New York high society through his vapid and superficial behaviors such as describing acquaintances solely through their brand name clothing as well as intense distaste for the homeless in New York. A close analogy I can provide for Patricks dynamics with characters can be described as a dangerous and bloodthirsty shark being dropped into an aquarium full of unassuming fish. Despite the numerous and blatant attempts and hints Patrick drops throughout the course of the novel to his friends and victims, none take any notice or show any sign of wariness. The reasons for this can be numerous and I’ve developed many theories, when he offers the escort girls money despite his previous torture against them they still walk confidently into the lions den hinting against towards the money hungry part of society. Additionally when his acquaintances brush off his scary remarks also indicates their distaste for conversation that doesn’t interest them or an overall inability to listen which also points towards a superficial aspect to Patrick’s dynamics with his friends.
Overall, I really like the message and the writing style of the novel as well as the character profiles of Patrick, but the torture scenes of this novel broke me. Way to explicit (coming from a Stephen king fan) I couldn’t handle them so I had to bump down my rating.
davidsenpie's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Honestly hard to put into words how amazingly written this book is to me. It made me feel like complete shit, it was amazing. I would be eager to return to this over the years. One of the greatest character studies of all time only made more genius by how the protagonist acts as a metaphor for America and his actions and attitudes a pure unfiltered reflection of our culture. Absolutely love this book.
robertooogreenreads's review against another edition
dark
emotional
informative
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Great read really delves into the human pysche and let's loose on the absurdity of the human mind.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence and Gore
azulafenix04's review against another edition
4.0
What if Ed Gein and the Joker had a baby who worked on Wall Street!? My God this book was so hard to get through, but worth it. The movie was definitely Sesame Street compared to the book.
codexmendoza's review against another edition
1.5
overall this book has the same feeling as doom scrolling reddit for hours on end: male fashion fit pic, overly long and pedantic music review, violent fantasy about killing women, light sprinkling of racism, five hundred comments on what the best audio equipment is, some world news, made up relationship advice problems.
I feel like negatively rating this and saying the intense misogyny was repulsive opens one up to cries of “but you don’t get it! It’s a satire of violent male fantasies and the decay in society!” but the thing is, that’s very obvious as it is telegraphed incredibly unsubtly over and over. it’s just that the book is all shock and no awe, and in fact rather positions the “darkness” of Bateman in a very romantic light. man cornered by insane society, etc etc. although I will say that the one saving grace is how it becomes quite clear that outside of his fantasies of himself a sexy ice cold serial killer, Bateman is just a sweaty loser dork. but once again: reddit dot com
incredibly bad flow to the thing though; the extensive designer brand dropping gimmick feels like it exists to mask the fact that all the sentences go clunk. there are some attempts at stylistic flourishes (parodies of music reviews, a sudden change in point of view) but they’re empty and cynical gestures. I suppose like a GQ product recommendation article, the prose is designed to be skimmed.
I feel like negatively rating this and saying the intense misogyny was repulsive opens one up to cries of “but you don’t get it! It’s a satire of violent male fantasies and the decay in society!” but the thing is, that’s very obvious as it is telegraphed incredibly unsubtly over and over. it’s just that the book is all shock and no awe, and in fact rather positions the “darkness” of Bateman in a very romantic light. man cornered by insane society, etc etc. although I will say that the one saving grace is how it becomes quite clear that outside of his fantasies of himself a sexy ice cold serial killer, Bateman is just a sweaty loser dork. but once again: reddit dot com
incredibly bad flow to the thing though; the extensive designer brand dropping gimmick feels like it exists to mask the fact that all the sentences go clunk. there are some attempts at stylistic flourishes (parodies of music reviews, a sudden change in point of view) but they’re empty and cynical gestures. I suppose like a GQ product recommendation article, the prose is designed to be skimmed.